Black Desert Online and the Quest for Pants

There’s been some radio silence these past two weeks for a very good reason: Lord Crumb was visiting and since it’s so rare that we’re on the same continent (nevermind in the same room), I wanted to focus on spending time with him. And what a time it was…we had a lot of fun that included family gatherings, an escape room, and lots and lots of food. Mostly quiches. Unfortunately he flew back the other day so I’m back on my lonesome again and a little sad about it.

We both spent a lot of time playing Stardew Valley (I’ll have to give an update on that later) and got a little burnt out on it. He ended up playing Factorio (which he loves) and I went searching for a game to play as well. After not really feeling like playing anything in my Steam library, I decided I wanted to give Black Desert Online a shot since so many people have been talking about it. The wonderful Mersault was kind enough to send me a guest pass over Twitter and I set about downloading the game right away.

The start of the game, being the character creation, had a rocky start for me. While I enjoy playing jack-of-all-trades type characters, if I have to pick a class, I’ve discovered that I like tanky melee characters. Which originally lead me to look at the Valkyrie class. But the choices were just…ugh.

One thing you should know about me is that I wear pants as often as possible. They cover my legs and keep them from getting cold. They protect my skin from getting cuts, scratches, and insects while walking through the wood and they’re less likely to get tangled in something as opposed to a skirt. The point is I really like pants and they seem like the perfect lower body clothing for an adventurer.

The female characters in BDO have a serious aversion to pants, especially the Valkyrie. I flicked through the different clothes options only to discover that my choices were Sexy Bar Wench, Sexy Knight With Revealing Armor That Doesn’t Protect Vital Areas, and combinations of the two. With feathers sometimes. Because why the hell not. And don’t even get me started on those high heels.

I guess chafing isn’t a thing in BDO

So sadly the Valkyrie was out. The Tamer was my second choice and there were some outfits that didn’t look that bad. They even had pants!

I was kind of bummed that I couldn’t play my preferred class due to ridiculous armor but I figured I’d make the best of what I had. I did have a hell of a time trying to make my character look like a black woman rather than a 12 year old white anime character. Ironic considering how others have talked about how powerful the character creation is in this game. What I ended up with wasn’t exactly what I wanted but was acceptable.

Notice her legs though? Why yes, she’s not wearing any pants! It turns out that the clothing you pick in the character creator doesn’t translate into what your character wears in game. Because of course not. She did start off wearing capri-style pants which I was fine with. My first armor upgrade though? Gave her short shorts.

At least the shorts means that ride looks less uncomfortable

There was the thought that maybe the climate makes shorts more comfortable (although I still wouldn’t like to go traipsing the bush with bare legs). Except I soon discovered that female NPCs not only have pants but way more realistic armor.

Except that silly boobplate on the far right

Seriously, can I play one of the NPCs instead? They seem so much more awesome. Or is there some way to steal their armor? WHO DO I HAVE TO KILL TO GET PANTS DAMMIT?!

A year has passed in game time since the first time I wrote about Stardew Valley, so I’m now approaching the end of Summer in Year 2. So much has changed in that time. I’ve completed almost all of the…

So, Stardew Valley. If you’ve never heard of it before, you haven’t been reading other gaming blogs or noticed it as a top seller on Steam. It’s a game that’s just exploded in popularity since its release. I’ve actually known…

2 comments

Yeah, BDO isn’t exactly nice to its pants-favouring heroines. Matters are made worse by the fact that there actually aren’t many gear upgrades that change your look- i’m surprised it happened to you already. I could’ve sworn my Valkyrie wore what i chose for her, though, but maybe i’m wrong. Other than that- hey, you are of course welcome to buy feathery outfits that cover the whole body for 30$ in the cash shop 😉
I hope you’ll enjoy the game regardless. Or if not, then i hope those 7 days will help you make a decision or save 30$.

Yeah…I took a look at the store outfits and they’re even worse than the regular ones. The funny thing is that some of the crafted outfits look great but they can’t be “transmogged” over other armor because the item to do that isn’t in the NA/EU game yet.